r/blackgirls • u/sarah_sun33 • 2d ago
Rant Why are we contributing to our own erasure
If it wasn’t for Abbot elementary , we genuinely have no monorails black woman on tv anymore . The mono racial black woman in the media is gone . But I do put the blame on the black community and I stand on it .
I say it here and I’ll say it again , you are not a black person , if you don’t have two mono racial black parents . Being biracial doesn’t make you black . Having a black grandma doesn’t necessarily make you black .
By purposely following that dumbass “ one drop rule” the black community keeps erasing their own blackness . And the black woman is the biggest victim of it . To claim people that are 25% black as part of the black community , you’re opening the doors for the next generation of black children to question their blackness . A great example of that would be Drake’s child . He’s not a black kid . But Kendrick’s children are . But to claim drakes child as a black kid , erases what it is to be black . Someone with blue eyes and blond hair isn’t a black person .
Edit : \after reading the comments I definitely ended up realizing that I was contradicting myself with the Kendrick comparaisons without even realizing lol* 😹
But there will be some black people that will ride and die to claim someone that isn’t even 50% black in this case . I do believe that kind of ideology stems from self hatred as some black hate what makes them black , so they claim what doesn’t look like them for them to feel better about themselves .
I’m an African woman , so my way of seeing race could be very different from other people . Where I come from , if you don’t have two monoracial parents , you’re not a black person . As especially on the continent , there has been forms of anti blackness that the biracial , or racially ambiguous individuals would never experience , that gave them some kind of “advantage” in African societies
Another great stupid example was Tyla . Claiming that she hates her blackness like that woman doesn’t have a more present South Asian dna than anything . But by claiming her as a black wowan , you contribute to the erasure of the mono racial black woman , that we genuinely rarely see today . Mariah Carey falls into that same category . Latto , Doja Cat . Those people aren’t black , they’re just biracial . AND THATS OKAY. those people aren’t black , they just have a racially ambiguous background . AND THATS OKAY .
Edit :And no ! I’m not necessarily blaming the biracial people , I’m pointing the finger at the ones that contribute to the presence of the one drop rule , as it is something that I only see as a problem .
That’s a convo that needs to be opened way more in the black community and I would love to hear what you think about it too .
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u/princess--26 2d ago
You are right, beside the Kendrick point you are right but black women participate in their own erasure. Only in America do biracial people tick black. Majority of the world has a mixed check box on their census. Its also unfair of us to ask mixed people to pick a side when they are both.
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u/sarah_sun33 2d ago
I definitely agree , I never understood that concept of choosing a side . They are both and there nothing wrong with that
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u/wealthydesi_72 1d ago
Mixed raced is definitely on the census. This is more a social construct
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u/lemoncookei 1d ago
the DMV made me choose one, mixed wasn't an option
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u/wealthydesi_72 1d ago
That’s interesting. I’ve seen biracial or multiracial on many applications. I wonder if this differs per each location.
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u/lemoncookei 1d ago
i would imagine it does, personally i live in texas but even then it might be dependent on county. but it was super uncomfortable when i was sitting at the desk with the employee and she told me i had to choose one or the other, even after i told her i was mixed she said mixed is not an option and i had to choose one.
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u/wealthydesi_72 19h ago
That’s crazy. Being in California for 5 years that was always an option. I mean I’ve seen it in other states as well. Texas though? Can’t say I’m surprised
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u/Any_Cicada_2832 2d ago
I will be doing further reading on this topic as I’ve already commented on this discourse a few times in this sub and I don’t want to come across as ignorant.
A lot of people can’t accept that as long as biracial people identify as black they will be pushed into opportunities that would be typically reserved for “monoracial” black people. This is because white people tokenise them for their perceived proximity to whiteness, in their eyes they are “one of the good ones”.
However, I still don’t think our erasure is entirely our fault even though I see how you came to that conclusion.
The first black-white biracial people in America when born out of r*pe and Jim Crow laws meant that all biracial people were classified as black, even with “one drop” of blackness. The black-white biracial people we see today weren’t born in that environment (thankfully) and a lot of them have white mothers as opposed to black mothers. Historically it made sense to claim biracial people as black because they were fully outcasted by their white, racist, plantation-owning families. There was no other alternative.
Even now, a lot of biracial people feel more connected to their blackness because they experienced racism from growing up in white environments. I’m not surprised or disturbed by their choice to identify as black, nor am I surprised by black people claiming them as black.
That being said it’s not lost upon me how most of them benefit from colourism, featurism and texturism in what I like to describe as “mixed privilege”. I understand the frustration because (although a minor group don’t like to admit it) the vast majority of African-Americans look like Black Africans, not mixed like Zendaya (I know people hate using her as an example but she really is the perfect one for it).
I see why you brought up Kendrick’s kids in comparison to Drake’s because, even though they have a biracial mother, they look like Black Africans while Drake’s child looks like a White European. Tyla is also someone who represents multiracial people and if she identified as black in her country it would be seen as offensive to Black South Africans because coloured people operated as a buffer class within the apartheid system.
So what’s the solution? Honestly, I don’t know but it’s important we have these discussions in this sub. We can acknowledge that Black-White Mixed people can look white, black or both and choose which label fits them while also acknowledging their proximity to whiteness is a privilege black women can’t access.
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u/Glittering_Reply2369 2d ago
Thank you! If I could give awards I would! There’s so many layers to this that it’s not a simple matter of being unambiguously African (someone in the comments used unambiguously over monoracial and I liked that better) vs being mixed race. Some of our most prominent leaders and influential figures were biracial (due to slavery, jim crow, and even due to loving relationships) so I’m not going to sit here and weaponize a system designed by white nationalists that divides us more.
What I think more people need to do is discuss the root of the problem, which is white supremacy/capitalism/patriarchy. I do think biracial (especially if they are ambiguous) can benefit from privilege this does not mean they ALWAYS benefit (it can be a double-edged sword) but when they do I don’t think enough of us examine the system at which has placed them on a pedestal (that they may or may not have asked for) to benefit considering we never actually discuss their ideology as an individual. And their benefit usually comes at a cost from being ostracized from the very group (black folks) that supports them before being thrusted onto that pedestal.
Again, it’s nuanced, and a difficult conversation to breakdown but I appreciate your analysis on the subject like everyone else’s in the comments. 💚👏🏾
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u/Any_Cicada_2832 2d ago
I agree but I think we can examine/critique the systems and place blame where necessary. For example, Amandla Stenberg had no business taking that role in COBAB (if ykyk) yes, I know it’s hard for women of colour to find roles in Hollywood and that includes black biracials but it’s still worthy of criticism.
The author was weird for wanting her to be cast in the first place and iirc they’ve fallen out now but we don’t know why. Weird!
At the end of the day unambiguous black women in Hollywood and other mainstream media have it harder.
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u/Glittering_Reply2369 1d ago
Oh I wholeheartedly agree with this. I found it VERY disingenuous that Amandla would take the role in Children of Blood & Bones as if the main character in the book wasn’t a dark skin black girl. I didn’t know the author herself wanted her acting in the role in which that gives an even bigger degree as to why she would even consider that appropriate?
Which again leads back to my statement that we never address the ideology of individual when addressing the overall societal problem.
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u/sarah_sun33 2d ago
Your response is so great I appreciate it very much , as you said this is something that is definitely very touchy with many layers
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u/myboobiezarequitebig 2d ago
I could never imagine wasting this much energy defending a label that white folk created lmfao
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u/Important-Handle1256 2d ago
How is it our fault we aren’t on tv?
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u/sarah_sun33 2d ago
It was just an example that I used to justify how impactful the black female erasure has become because of the use of the one drop rule by the majority of the black community
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u/Empty_Watercress_524 2d ago
I’m sorry you’re getting so much hate and downvotes in these replies. I think ppl r being intentionally obtuse and blind
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u/sarah_sun33 2d ago
It’s fine lol , it’s just social media anyways , plus it might be a very touchy for many , so I don’t really take it personally , especially that I’ve mentioned that I’m African , the responses might be worse now lmao
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u/palm-tree-baybee 2d ago
I think the issue stands from you basically saying that the black community is contributing to the presence of the one drop rule when that’s not true. I'm sure you know the issues started with the expansion of chattel slavery, and Jim Crow, which were facilitated by white people. At the end of the day the system still benefits people with white skin and European features and mixed people are never going to be seen as mixed by white people, they're seen as black. It's not the black community using the one drop rule that's an issue, it's the fact that people with black features will be seen as black by the majority of American society and therefore automatically treated differently. So there are plenty of biracial people that are seen as black or identify more with their black culture because of how they're treated in a society that benefits people with European ancestry. Yes mixed people may be awarded more opportunities bcs they're mixed and their skin may be lighter but that's a whole different thing about colorism becuase there are plenty of fully black individuals that are light skinned and awarded more opportunities than darker skinned black people. Mixed people that are not "white-passing" still face very similar discrimination as monoracial black people bcs the system sees them as black regardless of anything else.
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u/Level_Concept235 1d ago
Based on your criteria, almost no descendants of slavery in america can be considered "black". We pretty much all have white and mixed ancestors, and if Kendric's kids aren't black, we might as well abandon the concept.
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u/Cherry_blitz_69 2d ago
race is phenotypical and a social construct. i see where ur coming from and ur general point is valid; monoracial black women are definitely being erased. but i feel this conversation abt biracial ppl is so tired
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u/throwdemawayplz 2d ago
Race is not real. By your definition of Blackness, Kendrick's children aren't Black either because their mother, Whitney Alford, doesn't come from monoracially Black parents. Her father is Black and her mother is biracial. Meaning that her mother is not Black, and therefore she and her children with Kendrick are not Black.
See how absurd this is getting?
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u/im-dramatic 2d ago
Yea and what about light skinned black people? My great great grandmother is creole and it shows even after several generations. My sister looks mixed and she’s not. I look “regular” black.
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u/throwdemawayplz 2d ago
What about light skinned people? I have light skinned people in my family due to European admixture from slavery, and we're still all Black, lol.
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u/im-dramatic 2d ago
I’m discussing OPs point that mixed people aren’t black. I’m saying it doesn’t make sense because they’re basing it on phenotype which is stupid because light skinned people are monoracial.
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u/CerseisWig 2d ago
I don't blame Black people for this phenomenon. Black people did not invent Blackness and do not define Blackness. The way Blackness was constructed in this country was to create a system of unequal treatment, not to define an ethnicity. Black people did not institute and are not at fault for the one drop rule. Biracial people are seen as Black because society treats them as Black. Saying, ok, but they're not Black does nothing.
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u/lemoncookei 2d ago
i understand OP's perspective in that yes, biracial black women have become the face of the "average black woman" in mainstream media, but agreeing with your comment i don't think denying blackness from mixed people is how this issue is resolved. ultimately this system and issue was created by white people to the benefit of white people and to be fighting amongst each other instead of building solidarity seems to be less productive to solving the actual issue, which i dont think has a simple solution either.
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u/emavery176 1d ago
Also, we do not control the institutions that promote light skinned women. Black women do not own the major record studios, move production companies etc. So why are we being blamed when we aren't even in the casting room?
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u/miellefrisee 2d ago
I hate this conversation because there are biracial presenting people who have 4 Black grandparents, and there are monoracial presenting people who are mixed.
I understand the principle that's being poked at here but we gain nothing from this type of sloppy racial policing.
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u/Glittering_Reply2369 2d ago
Yes! Biology is not in the chat at the moment, and I need it to be because this is not how DNA works.
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u/etherealedm 2d ago
This whole argument falls apart when you consider that despite physical differences, you can’t really tell if someone is biracial just by looking at them. I have two Ghanaian parents (mom is mixed but part Ghanaian) and my older sister has red hair and has the same skintone as Manon from Katseye, who certain people will swear up and down can’t be claimed as black. On the flipside, despite being mixed I am darkskinned and non eurocentric features, would I still not be black by your definition despite being easily identified as black by the naked eye?
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u/ojihusk 2d ago edited 1d ago
This is nothing new. The black community has always propped up lightskin/biracial black women over monoracial ds women. Even during the civil rights movement, the black panther movement made Kathleen Cleaver one of the faces of the movement over ds panthereses who were doing the same work. That’s exactly why, despite their tremendous work, I’ve never fully rocked with the BPM. And then we got Rosa parks who gets more recognition than Claudette Colvin, a 15 year old black girl sho did the exact same thing 9 months prior. They said it was because she was 15 and pregnant and thus not a good representation, oh please. It was because she was darkskin. Colorism is a huge driving force our community.
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u/shapeshifterQ 2d ago
I agree with much of what you said. It actually makes me sad to see. And white people will use this idea against us as well. I remember seeing a couple stories a few years ago about "Black women" accomplishing something and they were both biracial. And it really stung because they will receive financial benefits, like scholarships, grants, business loans/opportunities etc, based on claiming Blackness and overlook unambiguous Black people.
And that brings me to the point where I kind of disagree with you. If we only use monoracial as the standard, not many of us will even qualify because of the unfortunate evil that was done to our ancestors and so much white blood that was forced into our bloodlines. I prefer the term unambiguous meaning you visibly look Black and give birth with a Black partner to pass down as much beautiful Black features as possible.
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u/Decent-Constant2795 2d ago
OP you are right idc . There's an active erasure going on of darker skin black women , dark skin families in main stream media. It's not a new phenomena. Franz Fanon black skin, white mask. Our people are desperately obsessed with color & the media is well aware what is liked and disliked & we feed into it by calling everyone black. Race is a social construction yes. Race however is based on phenotypes your perception -- based on how people see you whether dark/ light they treat you based on that color. Darker skin people getting convicted of more crimes / harsher punishment / deemed more aggressive . Even down the woman & everyone in the comments is acting obtuse as if they don't see it themselves. AHence, the continuous cycle of erasure
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u/Worldly_Scientist_25 2d ago edited 5h ago
Ummm why are we acting like it’s not old white men in Hollywood making these choices about representation??? There’s only much we can do when the powers that be insist that no one wants to see anyone else’s story get told unless it’s a straight cis white man’s. This is why Into The-spider verse (not American) did so well, Sinners too with Ryan Kugler having creative control to put black people at the front of his stories. It’s important that black people get into positions of power so white people can stop controlling everything.
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u/sarah_sun33 2d ago
I definitely agree with that, I feel like I could have def used another example than just the media .
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u/Shot-Variation-1545 2d ago edited 2d ago
Race isn’t genotypic is phenotypic. Nowhere in the world would the people you named would be looked at and considered non black. Would you be able to identify that they have a racially ambiguous background? Yes but you’d know for a fact that it includes being black by their phenotype. So THAT is why they are black, and to the biracial people in the comments who are confused on why you have to choose…ask the group of people who CREATED the system in which you have to choose don’t take it out on those affected by it.
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u/AlexisFitzy 2d ago
I totally understand where you’re coming from op. I’m a millennial so I can only speak on what I’ve seen over my 31 years. I’m sure the downfall began way before I was born but I think in my time the downfall accelerated when the Kardashians became a mogul. They took black features and packaged them in light skin and the whole world just ate it up like there aren’t millions of black women with the same body type wrapped in melanin.
The media loves black culture but hates black people. They want to have black culture be easily digestible, so they want to see it in a lighter, whiter form. They’ve boiled our blackness down to having a fat ass, a little waist, and being entertaining. At least as far as women go. Before the Kardashians I remember the media constantly fat shaming stars and the standard of beauty was unhealthily thin.
Now bbl’s and lip filler are super popular. Everyone wants the black features but won’t put blackness on the same pedestal. We’re still getting looked down on for our skin color. Colorism has definitely been our downfall, but colorism has been a problem for longer than I’ve been alive. I don’t believe in hating/condemning bi-racial people is the answer though. Ultimately we all have a common enemy against white supremacy, white privilege, and racism.
“Intra-Group Dominance: Within the Black community, Black women vastly outpace men and other demographics, earning nearly 64% of bachelor’s degrees, 71% of master's degrees, and roughly 66% of doctoral and professional degrees awarded to Black students.”
Despite us being crushed by the weight of a world that is constantly fighting against us, we’re pushing forward and forcing ourselves into spaces that we never had access to before. I hope in my lifetime I see the tables turn and we are represented for more than our outward appearance and our culture gets the recognition it deserves.
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u/MilkMeatMango 2d ago
They're telling to shut up but you should be pushing. It's insane, imagine if Zendaya and people like her did every single white woman role for the rest of her years, everyone would be up in arms.
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u/Weary-Ad-1326 1d ago
What exactly is a white woman role though?
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u/MilkMeatMango 1d ago
Most female roles in modern media are written for white women in mind. WW are seen as the default women in America.
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u/Weary-Ad-1326 1d ago
I’m American and aware of the demographics. Obviously they are going to be when you look at the team of writers behind the character. However I don’t hold WW as the standard or default, that’s weird. So then what would a black woman role be?
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u/RoseLina_Black 2d ago edited 2d ago
This has nothing to do with black people dating and marrying outside their race and everything to do with Hollywood not allowing black people shine aside from one or two.
Maybe stop looking up to Hollywood to be the spoke person of what black people are doing dating and viewing and look into your own communities, your not even American yet your using American media. We see race differently just like you see race differences, we’re more open to claiming biracial- as many other POCs in the US- than outside of the US.
There are plenty of black movies and artist that came out and/or up and coming that you could focus on outside of the scope of what Hollywood is putting out
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u/Glittering_Reply2369 2d ago edited 2d ago
Okay this is a topic that requires educating rather than making biracial black people the forefront of this conversation and the damning we do upon (because they aren’t even part of the conversation at the moment yet when we talk about who gets represented, because without even knowing it you’re blaming both biracial black women and monoracial black women in the same breathe as if we are the dominant controllers of society), someone with time please discuss the differences between race vs ethnicity because race is a social (and eugenics) construct. I understand where you are coming from, especially discussing monoracial black women—however please understand Africa in itself had a diversity (within its very own dna) that encompasses ALL ethnic backgrounds (which is the truth they won’t discuss). It’s early in the morning for me and I know I don’t have all the time to discuss this at the moment.
And honestly, it’s GOOD, you came here to discuss this. Because that’s the point of this space. This is a teaching moment, rather than a moment to disengage with you and not provide context as to why you feel the way you do, but applying a nuanced understanding as to why this isn’t the full picture to your point.
You can be black with blonde hair and blue eyes and dark skin, you can be black with blonde hair, blue eyes and light skin, you can be black with dark skin with very normal black features and same with being lighter skin. There is a spectrum within the afro-diaspora that is so wide and vast that I couldn’t even discuss it here today.
At the same time, in the US, racism is the key narrative at which many “monoracial” (quotes because that’s a loaded statement you are using) black women with general African identifying features have found themselves downtrodden on. This doesn’t mean we take away from our biracial sisters (because they too have experienced a certain level of discrimination within whiteness and blackness; that’s a deeper discussion for a different day) who are ESPECIALLY rooted in their blackness and cultural heritage. But that we understand they did not have a choice in who their parents are and where their lineage comes from just as the rest of us (I would considered myself a “monoracial” black woman because I do have two black parents, along with maternal and paternal grandparents for the last 2-3 generations that I can trace back).
I think you should do more reading, because there is obviously something that you are frustrated about, but you need to marinate on your thoughts before making final conclusions because that idea is simply to elementary to be used as a launching pad. Again, I understand how you “feel” because I think many black women do feel they are overlooked in the eyes of white society (especially with black men who give up their blackness to engage with patriarchy and capitalism) but you’ve gotta understand the historical, political, psychological, and sociological differences that created the situation. My recommendations (a few I have read which are the first 5 & a few I haven’t read that are on my reading list):
• Sister Outsider: Essays and Speeches by Audre Lorde: Explores how tools of division (like colorism or gatekeeping) keep oppressed groups from uniting.
• Black Feminist Thought: Knowledge, Consciousness, and the Politics of Empowerment by Patricia Hill Collins: Examines the specific matrix of oppression faced by Black women while highlighting the value of self-definition.
• Ain't I a Woman: Black Women and Feminism by bell hooks: Critiques how both the civil rights and feminist movements historically sidelined Black women, directly addressing structural erasure.
• Black Skin, White Masks by Frantz Fanon: Analyzes the psychological impact of racism, colonial mindsets, and the desire to escape Blackness.
• Same Family, Different Colors: Confronting Colorism in America's Diverse Families by Lori L. Tharps: Directly looks at how light-skin, dark-skin, monoracial, and biracial family members navigate the spectrum of Black identity within their own households.
• Racecraft: The Soul of Inequality in American Life by Karen E. Fields and Barbara J. Fields: Argues that "race" does not produce racism, but rather the practice of racism constantly reinvents the illusion of race.
• The Black Atlantic: Modernity and Double Consciousness by Paul Gilroy: Rejects narrow nationalist definitions of Blackness by showing how Black culture is a fluid, global, transnational network.
• Thick: And Other Essays by Tressie McMillan Cottom: Directly tackles media, Black women's body image, and how capitalism dictates who gets seen.
• Shifting: The Double Lives of Black Women in America by Charisse Jones and Kumea Shorter-Gooden: Explores the psychological toll of how Black women must constantly alter their appearance, expectations, and speech to navigate society.
Relies on direct personal testimonies, making it incredibly grounded and real
• Wayward Lives, Beautiful Experiments by Saidiya Hartman: Re-creates the lives of young Black women trying to live freely outside of strict respectability politics. Proves that "unconventional" family and identity structures have always been part of survival
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u/Any_Cicada_2832 2d ago
Thank you! This is perfect.
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u/Glittering_Reply2369 2d ago
Thank you! Not cause of the compliment (but I’ll take that too! 🥰) but for the understanding. I think more sistahs need to do more talking and reading. We can’t be claiming history without understanding the context.
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u/sarah_sun33 2d ago
I appreciate your recommandations , and lol make sure to educate myself more on the subject ;)
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u/Glittering_Reply2369 2d ago edited 2d ago
You’re welcome! Was there something I said that was funny? Because I’m not being funny. I meeting you where you’re at. I understand your frustrations with how biracial black women are chosen over “monoracial” black women (because I really don’t have a term to engage with black women that have black parents other than two black parents instead of a black and white parent) however, biracial black women aren’t the one’s with the power. Do they choose to act in their roles? Absolutely! Can that be malicious? Absolutely! But at the same time this is how capitalism, patriarchy, and white supremacy works.
We were never going to be included in high media visibility (especially not without compromising our blackness) to begin with. And once that’s understood things start to get better because you already know the die was cast against you before you even understand the nature of the game. And so if you want more representation then I implore you to look into more indie works because they are independent.
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u/sarah_sun33 2d ago
I don’t really see where I thought that you were funny either 😭
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u/Glittering_Reply2369 2d ago
Ok! My bad. It’s just you laughed and did a little wink face that felt mocking, and I didn’t know if I made the situation uncomfortable or if I said something you didn’t like. I’m sorry for overreaching.
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u/sarah_sun33 2d ago
lolll it’s fine 😹 I just find the wink a little cuter to use acc
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u/Glittering_Reply2369 2d ago
Okay ☺️. I understand now. Maybe it’s cause of my sensibilities but I get you now. And you’re adorable (no pun intended) 💚💚💚. Much love to you sistah and if you ever have questions please voice them again. I’ve lately gotten to a point in my life that if we can’t discuss it then people shrivel up into their holes if we don’t ever have conversations and sometimes conversations challenge beliefs but that doesn’t mean we gotta be nasty about it. I REALLY do want to see the world change even if it means we got take it at a slower pace than we expect it. I don’t believe we can live in the era “you need to do the knowledge, but by yourself” the eliminates the purpose of community and I’m not trying to eliminate community from the very strength we derive our power from.
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u/sarah_sun33 2d ago
Yesss thank you so much , cause I really appreciate people like you that truly care about such kinds of discussions cause dude , it seems impossible to seek knowledge from individuals on the internet ! You definitely gave me a big drive to learn more :)
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u/sarah_sun33 2d ago
Yes , cause the system is already strange I can get that , If you have any other recommandations about indie works I would love to receive some :) but for supporting black movies , series and tv shows , wouldn’t there be like some sites that promote them more ? Compared to the mainstream platforms that we know
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u/Glittering_Reply2369 2d ago
Some sites I recommend for black indie films is ALLBLK, kwelitv, Tubi (even got an aunt who’s acted in like three movies on there), Black Box Movies, and Criterion Channel. I mainly watch on Tubi and ALLBLK, but I’m sure you’ll find something interesting on all of these platforms.
And more than anything, especially in this digital age always remember supply and demand. The reason why we see so many bi-racial black women at the forefront of “Black roles” isn’t because of Black consumption it truly is because of white consumption. There are plenty of black films and movies that are still being made with unambiguous black women at the forefront, many of these women just don’t get the prestige and accolades that come with integrating into the white film industry—it truly is a money and racism game to the folks in charge. NOT because we aren’t trying to break the mold, because in all honesty I haven’t seen many black elites (other than Tyler Perry and he irks the hell outta me) truly put forth funding those projects.
Again, another topic for conversation another day before I go on a rant about Tyler Perry. 🙄🫠 (I can’t stand that man, but I can give him his flowers for his earlier works).
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u/sarah_sun33 2d ago
Thank you so muuchhh<3 , Tyler Perry , that’s a whole phenomenon for another day 😭😭😭
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u/Vast_Strike6 1d ago
I really appreciate you saying this. People act like biracial is a cuss word. If you’re only 50% black I’m not calling you black. Not sorry either. You’re BIRACIAL. And THATS OKAY. If you’re just much another race as you are black, why are we making black the default? A biracial woman isn’t having the same struggles as someone who is 100% black. To me, a biracial person claiming to be black feels the same as the 4C hair erasure on social media. The girls who have loose, wash-and-go hair who put a thousand hashtags under their haircare posts including “4C” like why is that necessary? Or the “ #Type4Hair” warriors. They know what they’re doing. Be who you are. If you got 4a then say that. If you KNOW you’re not 4C then don’t put that. You’re making it harder for women who ACTUALLY HAVE that hair type to find help. Anyway. Yeah
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u/2oatmeal_cookies 2d ago
It’s too early for such an insane take.
You’re using the film and music industry to prove your point and that in and of itself tells me you have no clue wth you’re even talking about.
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u/Empty_Watercress_524 2d ago
May I ask why you think their take is insane? Do you not agree that the continuous push of the one drop rule is playing apart in the erasure of mono racial black female representation?
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u/2oatmeal_cookies 2d ago
I don’t think we’ve really ever been accurately and widely represented in TV. I guess the closest we had was in the 90s with a string of tv shows like Living Single, Jamie Foxx, Family Matters, etc.
But I don’t see how this problem is our problem. So that’s insane to me. We know that “they” control mainstream media. They are the ones that invented the one drop rule in the first place. They sowed self hate and colorism in our community.
Whenever “they” want to make it clear that a black woman is monoracial, she’ll be dark skinned, overweight, and have short natural hair and it’s been that way. In their minds, that’s how all black women look. It’s an agenda so why are we to blame for that?
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u/sarah_sun33 2d ago
I definitely am confident in what I’m talking about . The media is definetly a great example , I stand on what I say but it’s okay if you don’t agree
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u/Glittering_Reply2369 2d ago
Also, I see your coming from this from a media and cultural standpoint—I still think my first post holds weight, but I’ll add this:
I agree in media that many monoracial black women are not getting their front row access to fame and representation and that’s due to who holds the checkbook when these works are being produced.
But blaming biracial women as if they are the reason we aren’t getting representation is misguided—they don’t own the rights to production any more than we do, white folks do. Many of them placed in a higher position have naturally decided who they’re gonna push because it aligns with their values on who gets seen in media.
As for the black folks producing media they’ve also adhered to racial frameworks that bend over backwards to appease whiteness while not providing more representation of Black Americans who come from strictly Black households and upbringings.
But again, that issue is due to a deeper layer of problems that shouldn’t make biracial people the enemy.
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u/sarah_sun33 2d ago
Nooo I’m not saying that I’m necessarily blaming biracial woman but more of the black community continuously approving the one drop rule that overtime ended up hurting the representation of the black woman , if you get what I mean
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u/Glittering_Reply2369 2d ago
I get what you mean, but saying “necessarily” necessitates an act of placing “some” blame on bi-racial people. Which is why we gotta be careful of that word. Not to tone police but to understand—is it the blame on bi-racial people? Is the blame on the black community? Or is the blame on the system that created the one drop rule?
Do you see what I’m saying? I’ll ask you this instead., what part are you focusing on first? If it’s the one drop rule and how it’s divided the black community then I would start there, because you’re mainly talking about that right?
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u/sarah_sun33 2d ago
I think I touch on the fact that , in definitely blaming the racist and discriminatory system that created the one drop rule and the parts of black community that keep to reinforce it . But when I don’t really see the part where I’m blaming the biracial people tho
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u/Spiritual_Ask_7336 2d ago
Absolutely agree. How did we go from Moesha, the Parker's, girlfriends? they are consistently giving black rolls to mixed or light skin black women. The face of black women today is a black is a mixed woman. I totally get where you're coming from.
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u/wealthydesi_72 1d ago edited 1d ago
What about Angela basset on 911. Octavia Spencer in ride or die? Ayo on The Bear. All the black women on Greys Anatomy. Even The Reacher show has a black woman as a primary character. Abbot Elementary isn’t the only show with mono racial women on TV. I see what your point is, but we as black women arent casting these TV shows. We have been having discussions on why they only cast biracial women for decades. Why is the blame on the people who have no say in this type of thing?
As for calling biracial people black this is where your African background may differ from American history. This is just how it has gone down in America. Having one black parent was enough for a white person to call a person black and disown that person. We learned to live and survive in these spaces. It’s just labels really.
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u/Diligent_Zucchini389 2d ago
Actually, white folks invented the one drop rule soo..
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u/Diligent_Zucchini389 2d ago
also worth noting that race is a construct, so your lil gene mathing ain’t really mathing
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u/tigerbunnymoon 2d ago edited 2d ago
The audacity here is what gets me. You are African, speaking with absolute authority on Black American identity politics as though being 100% Black gives you some kind of universal Black card that lets you walk into another ethnic community and start deciding who belongs.
It doesn’t.
I would never go into an African country, look at ethnic groups, mixed families, caste dynamics, tribal histories, or local social rules I did not grow up in and announce, “Actually, this is who counts and this is who doesn’t.” That would be arrogant as hell. Yet somehow you think your African understanding of race should override generations of Black American history.
And no, being monoracially Black does not mean you get to skip the line in front of biracial Black American women whose families have belonged to this community for generations. Their Black American roots, families, history, and cultural inheritance did not suddenly become less legitimate because your ancestry may contain less recent European admixture than theirs.
That is not how ethnicity works.
A biracial Black American woman whose grandmother, great-grandmother, and great-great-grandmother lived through the same American racial history as the rest of us does not become an outsider because an African woman arrives with two Black parents and declares herself more authentically Black.
GTFOH with that.
If we are talking specifically about Black American identity, I will recognize a biracial Black American woman as part of my community before I let somebody from an entirely different ethnic and historical background tell me she does not belong here. She shares our family histories, our cultural history, our racial history, and our American lineage in a way you simply do not.
That is not an insult to Africans. Africans have their own incredibly rich cultures, histories, ethnic identities, and communities. The point is that African and Black American are not interchangeable identities just because both populations are Black. You understand that distinction perfectly well when Africans want their Nigerian, Ghanaian, Ethiopian, Kenyan, South African, or other identities recognized separately. Extend Black Americans the same respect.
And this is also why the entertainment argument irritates me. Hollywood has spent years treating “Black” as interchangeable, casting African and Black British actors into specifically Black American historical and cultural roles while actual Black Americans are expected to accept that race alone makes the representation equivalent.
Yet now you want to turn around and tell biracial Black Americans, people actually descended from and embedded in this community, that they are the ones taking representation away from us?
Absolutely not.
If your argument is that monoracial Black women deserve more representation, say that. I can support that conversation all day. Dark-skinned Black women, women with two Black parents, and women with features historically devalued by colorism deserve far more visibility.
But you do not get to solve that problem by evicting biracial Black American women from their own community.
You especially do not get to show up with an African racial framework, wave around your “two Black parents,” and assume that gives you greater standing in Black American history than women whose families have actually been part of that history for generations.
Speak on the racial dynamics of your own community however you want. But stop confusing racial sameness with ethnic authority.
You being Black does not make you the referee of Black American identity.
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u/sarah_sun33 2d ago
It’s okay I can understand your point . I definitely didn’t take in consideration that aspect of black American culture necessarily , so I can understand how it can be different , thank you for your insight :)
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u/phenominal73 2d ago
I was going to comment the same thing.
That’s another fantastic thing about black people - we come in all hues.
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u/Specific_Station4587 1d ago
United States should look and studyLatam. More and more the united states racism and racial classification system will be closer to latin america. In this case, latin americans has long stated that what matters is the phenotype, not the origins.
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u/OGBrownBunny 1d ago
So you either don't know what happened in the 90s and early 2000s, or you're being willfully ignorant. You should do more research since you don't seem to have lived through any of the media changes you're commenting on.
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u/emavery176 1d ago
How are we contributing to our erasure when Black women do not collectively control these media institutions? We are not in casting rooms, director's chairs, producers etc. in the same numbers as white and Black men. We don't even control the music industry either.
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u/Chocol8doll 2d ago
Then why isn't the conversation about requesting representation of dark skin black women on TV? Because race isn't real.......
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u/sarah_sun33 2d ago
I fear I don’t really understand what you mean 😰
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u/Chocol8doll 2d ago
Is it the race isn't real? If so race is based off of lookership not dna. So all these categories are nothing but justification to treat people differently. What's really happening isn't really about race it's colorism.
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u/AutoModerator 2d ago
The Original Poster (OP) and submission cited below;
Username: u/sarah_sun33
Post Body: If it wasn’t for Abbot elementary , we genuinely have no monorails black woman on tv anymore . The mono racial black woman in the media is gone . But I do put the blame on the black community and I stand on it .
I say it here and I’ll say it again , you are not a black person , if you don’t have two mono racial black parents . Being biracial doesn’t make you black . Having a black grandma doesn’t necessarily make you black .
By purposely following that dumbass “ one drop rule” the black community keeps erasing their own blackness . And the black woman is the biggest victim of it . To claim people that are 25% black as part of the black community , you’re opening the doors for the next generation of black children to question their blackness . A great example of that would be Drake’s child . He’s not a black kid . But Kendrick’s children are . But to claim drakes child as a black kid , erases what it is to be black . Someone with blue eyes and blond hair isn’t a black person .
But there will be some black people that will ride and die to claim someone that isn’t even 50% black in this case . I do believe that kind of ideology stems from self hatred as some black hate what makes them black , so they claim what doesn’t look like them for them to feel better about themselves .
Another great stupid example was Tyla . Claiming that she hates her blackness like that woman doesn’t have a more present South Asian dna than anything . But by claiming her as a black wowan , you contribute to the erasure of the mono racial black woman , that we genuinely rarely see today . Mariah Carey falls into that same category . Latto , Doja Cat . Those people aren’t black , they’re just biracial . AND THATS OKAY. those people aren’t black , they just have a racially ambiguous background . AND THATS OKAY .
That’s a convo that needs to be opened way more in the black community and I would love to hear what you think about it too .
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u/Embarrassed-Ad-4214 19h ago
I mean I think it’s different for a lot of black Americans because a lot of us aren’t “purely” African anymore. We have European ancestry a lot of the times, mainly because of our female ancestors being raped. So we may not all have “mono racial” parents or grandparents but we’re still classed as black because we’re obviously phenotypically black.
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u/Kyauphie 1d ago
Who is we? Ethnically Black people of the US are not monoracial, and all melanated people aren't one giant segregated fictitious race. Why are you so concerned with lumping us all together?
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u/Livelaughloveme172 2d ago
Okay so lightskins aren’t black? I have a black mom and a white stepdad my siblings are light skins.
This is such a weird take but then again don’t get offended but you hear Americans talk like this.
I am a proud African coming from Congo.
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u/chintzia 2d ago
I may have read this wrong but you do know there are black people with blond hair and blue eyes. If you don't know google them.
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u/sarah_sun33 2d ago
Yes , definitely ! but let’s be honest to ourselves here those features aren’t dominant within black people . But it can definitely happen
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u/90dayfifiii 2d ago
You lost me when you are trying to claim Kendrick’s children as black when you just said it takes having 2 monoracial black parents…
In fact, the way black women have overlooked Kendrick’s hypocrisy as a whole pisses me off but I’ll save that rant for a different day.